Waterway marker



2, 1968 R. H. BARTLEBAUGH 3,360,811

WATERWAY MARKER Filed Oct. 22, 1965 INVENTOR. 526%? H flaw/Yeazy/z BY ISWIM SWIM AREA AREA United States Patent 3,360,811 WATERWAY MARKERRobert H. Bartlebaugh, 5371 Cooley Lake Road, Pontiac, Mich. 48054 FiledOct. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 500,634 2 Claims. (Cl. 9-8) ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A waterway marker including a buoyant member with a closefitted skin covering and having a tie rod forced therethrough to expandthe buoyant member into retaining engagement with the covering andprotectively re tained engagement therein.

This invention relates to waterway markers in general, and moreparticularly to waterway safety markers for swim areas and the like.

Numerous efforts have been made to devise a simple and inexpensivewaterway marker suitable for identifying a swim area and to provideprotection for those using it. Most markers either lie too low in thewater or have too much of the marker submerged and underwater to bepractical.

It is important that a good swim area marker stand upright a reasonableamount above the water so that it is visible. At the same time it musthave suflicient stability to prevent it from laying over or bobbing outof sight too often without being too much under water. The part underwater is most subject to deterioration, particularly to salt water, andthe less the better.

Efforts to use cork and lightweight plastic foam materials of goodcellular construction have not been too successful. Although a number ofnew materials have good internal cohesive strength, they are easilydamaged and broken when subjected to external forces. Boats, beachballs, and the flailing arms and legs of youngsters, are usually morethan they can take.

It will also be appreciated that trying to tie an anchor or float lineto buoys of such material also presents a problem and a cause of wearand eventual deterioration.

It is an object of this invention to disclose a waterway marker which issimple in construction and inexpensive in materials and labor to makeand sell.

The waterway marker of this invention is made out of a light weightplastic foam material known as etheltone, and which has a cellularstructure which makes it very buoyant. It includes only two pieces andhas them secured together with a tie rod which also serves to hold theanchor rope. The tie rod is forced through both pieces in the assemblyoperation but is prevented from splitting the one which serves as amarker because of its outer vinyl plastic skin covering.

It is an object of this invention to disclose the use of an outerprotective skin covering for members of a cellular material whichrequire another member to be forced through them, and which mightotherwise split.

It is also an object of this invention to teach the use of suchprotective skin coverings for plastic foam and like materials to makethem more serviceable for use as waterway markers and to teach printingon the insides thereof for self-protection against the elements.

These and other objects and advantages will be better known andappreciated upon a reading of the following specification havingreference to the accompanying drawings and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a waterway marker made in accord withthe teachings of this invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the ice waterway markerof this invention, with the mid-section part broken away, to show thegeneral construction of the disclosed type marker.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the protective skin covering as spread openand laid flat.

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of the marker, in a different dimensionalscale than the other figures.

The waterway marker 10 of this invention is intended to float on top ofthe water 12 and to include a base part 14, which provides stability,and an upright part 16 that serves as the visual marker.

The base part 14 and upright part 16 are made of a lightweightpre-formed plastic foam material known as etheltone. It has a styrofoamlike cellular structure which makes it very light in weight and verybuoyant in the water.

The base part 14 in square, as best shown by FIGURE 4, and the uprightpart 16 is cylindrical in shape. For a 16" square base the cylinder isabout 6" in diameter and 36" long. This causes the marker to be quitevisible for considerable distances, because of how high it stands out ofthe water.

A tie rod 18 holds the two marker parts 14 and 16 together. It is formedto include an eye 20 at one end and it is threaded or otherwise formedat the other end to receive some form of fastener means. In thisinstance a large washer 22 and nut 24 are used The tie rod 18 has aweight-mass 26 provided on its lower disposed end before it is used withthe marker parts. This is simply a piece of sewer crock or other shortlength cylindrical member 28 which receives the tie rod through it andprovides a form for a wet concrete mass 30' that forms a hard andpractically indestructable weight after it sets.

In general practice, the end of the tie rod 18 is stuck in the ground ina piece of sewer crock or the like 28, and wet concrete is poured intothe crock with the rod standing upright therein.

The tie rod 18 is forced through the etheltone base and upright parts 14and 16. This is done in a fixture, to be sure of alignments, but iswithout the benefit of any preformed hole in either the base or uprightcylindrical parts. This is no problem as regards the base part 14 whichhas a relatively large surface area in comparison to its thickness.However, absent the teaching of this invention as regards a skincovering 32 about the upright part 16, it would not be possible orpractical for the upright member of smaller cross-sectional area.

The member 16 includes a vinyl plastic skin covering 32 which is Wrappedcompletely around it and extends substantially from one end to theother. It is normally of a translucent material fiat printed on theinner side for whatever designs or legends are required. It may be madeup as a tube or sleeve and be fitted to the columnar part or it may bewrapped around it, overlapped and sealed in place. It need not be gluedor otherwise made to adhere to the cylindrical column but is preferablymade sufiiciently tight fitting to avoid doing so.

In the present instance the symbol 34 and color bands 36 in orange, withblack letters reading swim area on a white background, provide both anattractive and visually effective waterway marker.

The skin covering 32 provides both a weather protective covering for theupright part 16 and also a retaining form which enables the tie rod 18to be forced through it lengthwise, from one end to the other, withouthaving it split open.

The weight-mass 26 serves as a retainer or keeper on one end of the tierod 18 and butts against the base member 14. The upright part 16 has oneend engaged to the base and the tie rod extended clear through it. UponI tightening down the nut 24 on the tie rod 18, all of the parts areheld together securely.

The waterway marker is placed in use by fastening an anchor line 38 tothe eye under the mass-weight 26 and tying it in turn to an anchor 40 ofone form or another.

The broad base part 14 serves as a good stabilizer and the mass-Weight26 provides a sufficiently low center of gravity for the waterway markerto ride well on the water and not lie over and bob about too much.

Should any parts become damaged or broken, they may be easily replacedand the waterway marker made as good as new since the parts are notglued together but are only held by the tie rod.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that a new and significantlydifferent Waterway marker has been proposed and that both the marker andthe method of making it are of commercial significance and importance.

Although a preferred embodiment of this invention has been shown anddescribed in detail, it will be appreciated that certain modificationsand improvements are within the scope of the teachings set forth.Accordingly, such of these improvements and modifications as are withinthe spirit of the invention and are not specifically excluded by thelanguage of the hereinafter appended claims, are to be considered asinclusive thereunder.

I claim:

1. A waterway marker, comprising:

a solid core cylindrical member of buoyant material having a base memberof like material and larger circumferential size received in engagementwith one end thereof,

a close fitted sleeve member of pliable and protective plastic sheetmaterial open at opposite ends and received about said cylindricalmember throughout substantially the full length thereof,

a weighted member for attachment to said base member opposite saidcylindrical member, and means for attaching said weighted member to saidbase member and said base member to said cylin- 5 drical member receivedcentrally through said base member and axially through said cylindricalmember, said means including a rod for forming its own bore in saidcylindrical member and forceably displacing the material thereofradially outward into retaining engagement with said sleeve member andprotectively retained engagement therewithin. 2. The method of making aWaterway marker, comprising:

enclosing the side walls of a solid core cylindrical member of buoyantmaterial within a close fitted sleeve of pliable plastic sheet materialopen at opposite ends, forcing a tie rod of sufiicient girth relative tothe cylindrical member through the solid core member for forming its ownbore and displacing the material thereof into retaining engagement withsaid sleeve and protectively retained engagement therewithin, andattaching a weighted member to the lower end of said tie rod. ReferencesCited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,716,758 9/1955 Hajecate 98 3,116,4981/1964 Larson 98 3,132,417 5/1964 Irwin 98 X 3,167,793 2/1965 Keats 9-8MILTON BUCHLER, Primary Examiner.

T. MAJOR, Assistant Examiner.

